From All Sides

From All Sides

It did not take long after the brilliant Brazilian guitarist Bola Sete settled in San Francisco in the 1960s for an affinity to develop between him and pianist Vince Guaraldi. Guaraldi’s penchant for the music of Brazil had led to an enormous success with the hit "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" from his Black Orpheus album. Sete had already come to the enthusiastic attention of Dizzy Gillespie, another connoisseur of the samba rhythms making their way into jazz. Guaraldi was a member of the band of Cal Tjader, after Gillespie the most influential jazz adapter of Latin American music. Mutual attraction was probably inevitable. These two superb improvisers skillfully avoided the muddy collisions of harmony and tone that are a risk when pianists and guitarists collaborate. Their rhythmic interaction was exquisite in this classic encounter.